UNITED NATIONS — Many of the world’s poorest people are unable to get enough food because of soaring prices partly caused by the use of food crops to produce biofuels, the head of the U.N. food agency said.
“We’re seeing more people hungry and at greater numbers than before,” said Josette Sheeran, executive director of the Rome-based World Food Program.
Higher oil prices are contributing to steeper food prices by boosting transportation costs, and severe weather is also hitting many countries and hurting crop output, she said.
One of the problems is the drive to use corn, soybeans, sugar cane and other crops to produce biofuels, which are seen as a cleaner and cheaper way to meet soaring energy needs than greenhouse gas- emitting fossil fuels. That has led to less grain being available for food, driving up prices for basic foods in many countries.
